


Hearts and Minds (A Jefferson Love Story)

by AvengingSherlocksAssbutt



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: A more completed version is on quotev, Angst with a Happy Ending, Author Is Sleep Deprived, Author also has a Sebastian Stan kink, Author most certainly has a silk scarf kink, F/M, Jefferson and his hat, Jefferson is crazy as fuck, Jefferson's family, Just kind of disregard everything you know about Cora, OC has a silk scarf kink i think, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Set in Wonderland and Storybrooke, Sort of an AU I guess, Tags Are Fun, There aren't enough Jefferson stories, Work In Progress
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-26
Updated: 2014-08-26
Packaged: 2018-02-14 21:10:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,419
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2203218
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AvengingSherlocksAssbutt/pseuds/AvengingSherlocksAssbutt
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jefferson's past life in Wonderland still haunts him as he lives in Storybrooke, with his unknowing wife and daughter wandering around with no knowledge of him. In Wonderland, he falls in love with a princess, and with the promise of new lands and adventures, he takes her to the Enchanted Forest to start a new life. </p><p>But not everything is as simple as it seems.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. One - Spot

**Author's Note:**

> Every other chapter will be a flashback to Wonderland. This is my first (and let's face it, most likely only) Jefferson fic, because when I started watching Once Upon a Time I couldn't find many fics. On quotev if you type in Sebastian Stan on the search bar this story should appear somewhere (along with a lot of my other Bucky Barnes stories.)
> 
> I swear I actually have a life outside of writing fic.

I sipped my coffee, scowling down at the counter. I was completely and totally sick of work, and had no intention of stepping foot in my office ever again. Regina had come in to demand legal advice on something or other in the Mayor's office. I would have taken it - the money in giving legal advice to Regina Mills was always good - but I could barely stand to look at her recently. So now, after I'd left work, I'd come to Granny's for some coffee before I went home. Which probably wasn't the best idea. Sleep wasn't going to come easily tonight. 

"Hey Grumpy."

I glanced up to see Ruby leaning over the counter. "Hey."

"Rough day?" 

I gave a dry chuckle. "Oh, you don't even know the half of it."

She gave me a sympathetic smile before going off to clean a couple of nearby tables, while I returned to sipping the near scalding coffee. I was sat in silence for a couple of minutes before my cell went off. Groaning, I tugged it out of the pocket of my blazer, half expecting it to be my secretary calling to ask whether I was taking Regina up on my offer, but I was surprised to see Emma's caller ID. 

"Emma?"

"Hey. Are you busy?"

"No," I sipped my coffee. "Why?"

"Uh... Well you know how you're the deputy sheriff, right?"

"Ye-es..." I said with hesitation. I could smell an unwanted job on the horizon.

"Well, uh... I could use your help."

"With what?" I drummed my fingers on the counter. 

"Mary Margaret."

"What about her?"

"She managed to get out."

I almost spat my coffee across the counter. "She what?!"

"Keep your voice down!" Emma hissed. "Listen, I'm going out to look for her okay? And I need your help, as soon as possible. Just start patrolling town. Can you do that?"

I sighed, squeezing the bridge of my nose between forefinger and thumb. We needed Mary Margaret to be in her cell for the inquisition tomorrow. If she wasn't there, she'd be legally listed as a fugitive, and it wouldn't matter if she was guilty of killing Katherine Nolan or not. "Sure. I'll get right on it."

"Thanks Alex."

"Yeah, whatever." I hung up, pocketing my cell and standing up, flashing Ruby a smile. "Duty calls."

"Deputy work?"

"Yup." I took one last sip of my coffee before leaving the warmth of Granny's to the freezing Maine air that I loathed with a passion. 

 

"Hey Emma." I said, drumming my fingers on my steering wheel as I made my way along an empty road on the edge of town. "It's me. Again. I can't see any sign of Mary Margaret. Have you found her? Or at the very least, can you pick up your damn phone? Call me back when you get this."

I dropped my cell onto the shotgun seat, groaning again. I could have been sitting at home with my feet up, but no. Now I was hauling my ass across the edge of town trying to find a half crazy woman, who might or might not have committed the grossest murder I'd ever heard of. After this I was considering a paid vacation, at Mary Margaret's expense. 

I'd practically zoned out when I spotted the shadowy figure on the side of the road. At first, I thought it could have been Mary Margaret, and so when I got within a few feet I pulled up, got out of my car, and called 'Hello?'

The figure turned, and I realised now that I was outside it couldn't possibly have been her. They were too tall, and the shoulders were too broad. It was a man. 

"Hey." He called back, approaching slowly. "You lost?"

"Uh..." I gripped the door of my car as he came closer, finally getting near enough that I could distinguish his features. "Nope. Looking for something."

Wow, he was attractive. I took in his handsome face (most of which was cast in deep shadow) appreciatively. 

His eyebrows raised, and he shot me a pleasant smile. "Oh really?"

"Yeah. A uh... A dog."

"You're the Sheriff's deputy." He said, peering at me more closely. 

"Yeah, that's me." I said with false bravado. It was freezing outside. What the hell was this guy even doing out on the road?

"Alexandra Noble, right?"

"Alex." 

"Right. I'm guessing you're looking for Spot." He obviously saw the confusion that flitted across my face. "The dog the Sheriff's looking for?"

"Yeah!" I said, nodding along, trying to cover my tracks. "Yeah, that's the one. Have you... Seen her? Emma, I mean."

He nodded. "Yeah, she took the path through there." He pointed somewhere behind him, towards the trees that lined the road. I wrinkled my nose. 

"Really?"

"Yeah. Come here, I'll show you the path."

"Thanks." I stepped away from my car, following him over to the edge of the road. He motioned towards what was apparently a path, although I couldn't see it clearly. "You sure it's there?"

"Oh yeah, right over... There."

On the last word, something hit the back of my head, hard. A white hot pain exploded at the base of my skull, and everything went dark.


	2. Two - Celebrations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Set in Wonderland

"Enjoying the show?"

I turned on the grass to see a young man, probably not much older than me, walking though the small clump of trees from the forest to stand on the hill with me. I smiled across to him. "It is pretty amazing."

"Mind if I join you?" He asked, and I shook my head, patting the patch of grass next to me. He dropped down, a gentle 'humph' escaping his lips, before loosely clasping his arms around his knees and shooting me a pleasant smile. "I'm Jefferson, by the way."

"Ale -" I caught myself, changing tack quickly. "Annabeth."

He raised an eyebrow, but smiled pleasantly again. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Annabeth. These lights happen every year. Have you seen them before?"

I looked out across the dark land. The hill offered a quiet vantage point to watch the annual lighting of the enchanted lamps. They were lit every year for the eldest Princess of Wonderland. The celebrations for her birthday were always beautiful. 

"I have... Just not from this hill. I never get a view quite like this." I admitted. 

"It's funny..." Jefferson mused, picking a blade of grass and tearing strips of it apart in between his fingers. "I always thought that there were two Princesses of Wonderland. Yet these celebrations are always for Cora. I don't think I've ever seen any for her sister."

"She's the eldest." I reasoned, but he leaned back on his hands, shooting me an odd look. 

"You think that's the real reason?"

"What other reason would there be?"

He gave a low chuckle. "Well, from what I've heard, the younger Princess far surpasses her sister in beauty."

I was glad it was dark around us - otherwise the deep blush that crept up my cheeks would have thrown my ruse. "I'm sure the Princess would be honoured to hear such a handsome man say so."

He raised an eyebrow, his eyes raking my face, before looking back to the lights that rose in the sky. "Perhaps Cora wants to keep her sister in the shadows. Perhaps she is afraid she'll never find love when her sister is far more beautiful than her."

I laughed nervously. "Perhaps."

He leaned forwards, messing up his already haphazard brown hair with one hand, a grin stretching across his face. "The lights are starting."

Below us, close to the palace, I could hear the cheers as the lights rose higher and higher, casting a multi-coloured glow across both me and Jefferson. "I've never seen them like this. They look so... Beautiful..."

I didn't realise that Jefferson was staring at me intently until I chanced a glance at him. His blue eyes were lit up by the lamps in the sky, and he was smiling faintly. "Mmh... They are."

After that, the two of us began to talk. I was barely even aware of what we were talking about, all I knew was that conversation was coming very easily to us both. As the night went on I picked out a couple of blades of grass and began to braid them together, making one long winding chain. He watched me earnestly, his eyes never once leaving my hands as I worked. Somewhere in the distance, a clock began to chime midnight. 

"Oh no!" I dropped the braided chain I'd made, shocked that I'd managed to stay out for so long without realising. "I have to get home!"

I scrambled to my feet, staring out into the sky that had now gone dark, not even a trace of the lights left. Jefferson looked at me, his expression a mixture of confusion and amusement. "What, do you have a curse?"

"No... No curse." I laughed nervously. "Just... My parents are very strict. This has been fun, Jefferson..."

He nodded, the same charming smile returning to his lips. "It has indeed, Annabeth."

 

"You're late." Cora said coolly as I slipped into the wing of the palace that our bedrooms were in. She was sat by the window, evidently waiting for me. "I knew you would be."

"Sorry." I muttered, taking off my cloak. "I was having fun."

She snorted. "And missing my birthday celebrations. How considerate of you, Alexandra." 

I scowled up at my older sister, who was staring straight back across at me coldly. "You'll have another birthday."

"What did you do while you missed the party?" She called as I walked to my room. I paused at my door, glancing back to her. She sat patiently, waiting for my response. 

"I met someone." I said slowly. "A man."

One eyebrow hooked up. "Really? I assume you didn't tell him who you are."

"Of course not." I rolled my eyes. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go to bed."

I left her sat out by the window, closing my bedroom door quietly behind me and throwing my cloak down on my bed, before collapsing beside it and kicking off my shoes, yawning and thinking about Jefferson.


	3. Three - Some Tea?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Set in Storybrooke

Everything ached. My head was throbbing, and there was a dull pain that stretched up and down my arms. I groaned gently, raising my head and trying to look around my surroundings. 

"Oh, you're up." I heard someone say, their voice oddly conversational. Slowly, I turned my head to look to my left, where I saw the man from before - the man from the road - leaned against a chest of drawers. It looked like I was tied to a chair in a bedroom. 

"What..." I mumbled, leaning my head back. "Happened?"

He straightened up, moving towards me gracefully. "Sorry about the head. I needed to keep you here."

"Why?" I groaned, trying to focus on him. It was hard - everything seemed to swirl around me sickeningly. He tipped his head to one side, brushing a stray strand of hair from my face. 

"You'll see." He said after a long pause. After a moment's consideration, he added; "Hopefully."

"Please," I murmured, "I don't know what you want with me, but just let me go now, and I won't press charges."

He chuckled. "Oh, I know you won't."

His arms wound arms my back, and he began to loosen the bonds that secured me to my chair, before helping me up to my feet. Cautiously, I allowed him to help me, keeping an eye on him as he led me out of the room and down the corridor. I followed him wearily, wondering who the hell he was. Out of all the time I'd lived in Storybrooke, I couldn't remember ever seeing him, yet at the same time, there was something about him that seemed... Right. Like I knew him from somewhere. 

"Some tea?" He asked, leading me into a spacious kitchen. I glanced around nervously. The guy had just knocked me out, tied me to a chair, and now he was offering me tea? 

"No, thank you."

"More of a coffee girl?" He turned away from me to boil the kettle. While his back was turned, I glanced around for something I could use as a weapon if he turned out to be the crazy axe murdering psycho I was worried about. All I could spot was a nearby pair of scissors, that were lying open on the bench. To get to them, though, I would have to get pretty close to him. 

I decided my best bet was through the door to try and get outside. Even if this guy felt 'right' to me, I wasn't sticking around to try and find out if he wasn't crazy or homicidal. 

I backed up as quietly as possible, managing to get just out of the doorway and into the corridor and into the hallway before he turned around and saw me. 

"Shit." I hissed, scrambling down the corridor. He was taller than I was, and his long legs gave him a significant advantage. I'd barely gotten ten feet before his arms wrapped around me, and he dragged me into a side room. 

The room was dark, and as I kicked and struggled, I felt one hand clamp over my mouth, while the other pushed me into a chair. It didn't take him long to retie me, and as soon as he'd managed it, he stood back, looking oddly ashamed. 

"I didn't want to have to tie you up again." He admitted, before turning around and leaving the room. I groaned, leaning back in my chair and trying to strain against my bonds. He'd tied them pretty tightly, however, and struggling didn't do much. 

"Alex?" I heard a tiny voice from the darkness beside me. I froze, straining. 

"Mary Margaret?" I replied after a few moments. I heard a choked sob. 

"Oh God, oh God Alex... He grabbed me and tied me up in here. And he's got Emma too, and -"

"Wait, Emma's in here?"

"Yes. He's got her making some kind of hat or something, and I just... Oh God, Alex..." I heard her voice shake with tears. 

"It's gonna be okay." I assured her, not totally believing my own words. "It's Emma. She's probably got that Son of a Bitch exactly where she wants him, right?"

There was a pause, a sniff, and then, "I hope you're right."

I gave a mirthless laugh. "Yeah, so do I."


End file.
